Site of 1960 Winter Olympics offers lessons on achieving, and maintaining, success

The VIII Winter Olympic Games were held Feb. 18-28, 1960, at Squaw Valley, California, now called Olympic Valley. They are regarded as among the best Olympic Games ever held. Just as Vice President Richard Nixon declared the Games officially open a heavy Sierra snowstorm broke and the sky cleared. The next 10 days were perfect – with sunny skies and intense competition.

How a town with no mayor and a ski resort with one chairlift, two rope tows and a 50-room lodge hosted the Winter Olympics is an incredible success story. 

Alexander Cushing owned the resort and read about Reno, Nevada, and Anchorage, Alaska, submitting bids to hold the 1960 Winter Olympics. He decided to submit a bid to the U.S. Olympic Committee. They were impressed by the valley’s annual snowfall of 450 inches and skiing areas that had never been successfully schussed. Amazingly, they chose Squaw Valley as the USOC’s bid for the 1960 Winter Games.

Cushing launched a powerful campaign, lobbying for support from all over the world. Innsbrook, Austria, was the heavy favorite. But Cushing created a 3,000-pound model of the resort that was so big it had to be displayed at the U.S. Embassy instead of the International Olympic Committee headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland. The model highlighted all the venues, including the Blyth Memorial Arena, the Papoose Peak Olympic Ski Jump, the Alpine skiing slopes and the Olympic Village.

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After getting past the first vote, it came down to Squaw Valley and Innsbrook to vie for the Games. On June 17, 1955, the final vote was 32 to 30. The IOC chose Squaw Valley to host the VIII Winter Olympic Games. 

Cushing received the financial support of the California state government, the United States Olympic Committee and finally the U.S. government through a congressional resolution signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. He also raised private funding needed to develop the Squaw Valley site. The total cost was $80 million.

Squaw Valley went from a largely undeveloped site to a fully accessible and functioning town in just five years. Roads, bridges, administrative buildings, restaurants, hotels and motels were all built. An electric grid and sewage system were also installed, along with a water treatment plant.

Entrance to the Squaw Valley Olympic Village in 1960. (HUM Images/ Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Cushing then persuaded Walt Disney to create a spectacular opening ceremony, the first to be televised. With 30,000 balloons, 2,645 voices, 1,285 instruments, 2,000 pigeons released, fireworks – it was quite a show.

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Disney also oversaw the creation of the Tower of Nations, a huge metal structure topped by the Olympic rings. In front of this impressive structure was situated the

Olympic cauldron, which would burn throughout the 11 days of the Games. In this grand setting all the medal ceremonies took place.

It is a quintessential American success story on so many levels.

I visited the site on a recent trip to Lake Tahoe. Squaw Valley is now Olympic Valley; a name change made in respect to the Washoe Tribe. The resort is now called Palisades Tahoe.

The last 20 years the resort has become a premier ski destination, boasting 270 trails, 72 lifts, a 110-passenger tram and more than 400 inches of snowfall a year. It’s been quite influential in the freeskiing movement. And over the last eight years they have hosted three World Cup skiing events and U.S. Ski Association training.

Blythe Arena, built for the 1960 Winter Olympics, in Squaw Valley, California. (HUM Images/ Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

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But no other Olympic sporting events have taken place. 

Some of the original Olympic buildings remain, including the unique California and Nevada welcome centers, the dining hall, the Olympic lodge and the chapel. The Olympic Village, Blyth Arena, the ski jump and other buildings are gone.

The arena and ski jump have been absent for 40 years. After the impressive success of the Games there was not continued success. In the ’80s a major controversy and avalanche stopped momentum. Many years passed without any international events or training initiatives. The lack of venues eliminated future winter sports success. The Olympic impact has never been the same.

This is juxtaposed to Lake Placid, New York, another small town that has hosted two Winter Olympics. Their original success in 1932 led to continued success and 48 years later they had the opportunity to host the Games again. And they still regularly host international competitions and training events.

As hard as it is to reach success it can be even harder to stay successful than to initially have success. It takes so much effort to have success but once you reach it there is the possibility it can stop.

Skiers flock to Palisades Tahoe ski resort in Olympic Valley, California, on March 4, 2024, amid a blizzard warning for the area. (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)

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To sustain success, you must stay grounded regardless of your achievements. Don’t allow success to reorder your life. Just because you’ve had some success doesn’t mean your life is fundamentally changed. If you’re not careful, you can taste some success in your career, family, character, health or other areas of your life and start to think your above failure.

With success comes increased attention and scrutiny. People will try to copy what you’ve done, mimic your approach or outright steal your idea. It gets more challenging to be successful when there is greater competition. Only by continuing to innovate can you stay successful.

There’s a reason for the adage “golden handcuffs” – when you’re successful the expectations go up. Don’t assume that past success means future success. It would be a mistake to believe you’ll always experience success.

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And remember that without the favor and blessing of God, you never would have had success. You can’t measure success without the God factor. Be humble enough to recognize God’s role in any success you have in life. 

Knowing success is more a journey than a destination will keep you on the right road.

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